I have unsubscribed from the EK list. I can feel my blood pressure going back to normal.  I am ok with going  back to blissfully unawares.

Any announcements I need to make, I will find another way.

Documentation uploaded to my word press.

for I am perfectly capable of finding it on my own.

It started out with a simple declaration: for our reign the book The Princess Bride shall be period.- HRH of Northshield. This started the cranky postings on the EK list (which I am now a part of... some how I thought this was a 'good' idea as a potential communication method for ekweb stuff.... sigh).

To which Konrad, great and wise King of the East posted the following reply:
"The dread King Konrad, having braved the terrors of fireswamps and cliffs of insanity, avoiding getting involved in land wars in Asia, defeating Spaniards with steel, giants with strength, and Sicilians even with death being on the line, has come forward in a most inconceivable manner to declare that the film Princess Bride is period during the duration of the reign, in support of the Prince of Northshield.

As such, all documentation based upon the Princess Bride, be it cited by men with six fingers on their right hand, or ladies with perfect breasts, or owners of rodents of unusual size, or any less or more colorful characters, is hereby period.

Let any man who may stand against this declaration hear the fearsome cry...his name is King Konrad von Ulm ... You have insulted his brother... Prepare to die! As you wish, this six day of November, AS44, so it is decreed."

Now I am both intrigued and amused by the whole thing, which is probably a bad thing for such a young SCAdian (there there young scadian, this too shall soon pass). I got to thinking... why couldn't a paper be written that analyzes the book/movie for the things that we as a society strive for. That while TPB is fiction, and the SCA tries to accurately recreate elements of the past, the two do not follow different paths. I am seriously tempted to do a philosophical paper about how lessons from The Princess Bride are relevant to society and our game. His Majesty Konrad has decreed it would be period. Her Majesty Brenwen and Her Excellency Countess Alethea seem to think they would enjoy reading something like this. As you wish.

I think I have found my winter "I'm stuck in a cast" project. Now all I need to do is find a copy of the book.

Dear world at large,

 We need more happy and less sucky days. Stop being a douchnozzle.

Alysten

Salt dish for the head table is done. Technically, you can eat the vessel, as it is sugar and non-toxic paint. Though your dentist might have a few words for you, if you did.  Ths sugar is rock hard.

The first layer of fondant has been applied.  I will let this dry for about a week, so that it can get rock hard.  Then I will apply royal icing to get a smooth finish, before putting the fondant feathers on.

The swan has been started.  Here is the rice crispy shell. This will be covered in Fondant and feathers.



Maker's Mark for the salt dish:

Working in sugar is a lesson in work fast and then hurry up and wait. Both gum paste and fondant are similar in chemical composition. The difference lies in proportions and slight chemical variations. But basically, it is sugar and plant gums holding everything together. I have a period recipe for making gum paste and in essence it is nearly identical to the formula commercially available.

Gum paste is not very forgiving. It has a short set time which means you have a short window of working with it before its shape is set. It is super sticky so you must work with shortening on your hand and work surfaces to keep the sugar from setting. This gets your tools ickey, and clean up is a pain. The upside, the stuff dries rock hard and is useful for structural pieces, like the salt dishes.

Fondant is slightly more forgiving in that it feels like marshmallow and has a longer molding time. This makes it easy to create figures, like salamanders. The down side, it takes longer to set.

I am using both in the sugar "salt dishes". The base is gum paste the figures are fondant. The trick is binding the two sugars together. If you are not going to eat the pieces, then I recommend super glue. If you are going eat the pieces, I recommend royal icing, and a good book (another sugar which takes time to set, but is the super glue of the pastry world).  When finished, they will be painted with pastry paints and sealed with pastry varnish.( Pics below )

Turkey day was good. Turkey cooks a heck of a lot faster when you take out all the bones and cook it in one layer. 1 hour 15 minutes for 12 lb turkey. Pasties came out good as well. Round 2 of armor turnips, well received. Though I am going back to cheese mixture from round 1.

Recipes have been uploaded. Full recipes for courses 1-3 have been uploaded as well.

Tonight was fun with deboning a partially frozen turkey. It was all the way frozen when I bought it this afternoon. I was thinking I should take some pictures of the boning process. But then thought you all wouldn't be interested in the ins and outs of what happens to food when chefs get a hold of it. It took about 45 minutes, mostly due to it still being partially frozen. Did I mention butchery was my favorite class in culinary school? In some twisted way, being elbow deep in turkey made me a happy kid. Mr. Turkie is currently a sad sack of protein, with out its bony structure to give it support and shape. But the bones had to come out to become stock, which is currently simmering away happily on the stove. The turkey is tomorrow experiment for "how long will this take to cook so I can plan the cooking times for Yule".

Other things accomplished tonight:
Cooked a pot roast which will become beef pasties.
Made dough for crusts for said pasties.
Armored the turnips.
Made compound butter for larding turkie.
Completed recipes and documentation for course 3.
Started recipes and documentation for course 4.

The house smells good and there are fresh cookies out of the oven. And tomorrow, people are coming over to play food and trick or treat. Life really doesn't get better than this.

What methods would you recommend for documenting a feast for A & S? This will be a 20+ page document when finished, so I'd like to get a format that is easy for the reviewers to digest. What other things should be included along with the recipes and redactions.Currently I have a format of:

Introduction to feast concept
Course

Dish
Period recipe
Modern recipe
Notes: including deviations, historical notes, cooking methods, etc
Repeat for all dishes in course

Repeat for 3 more courses
Conclusion- includes lessons learned, and dish outcomes

(xposted sca_cookery)

That is all.

or these are the people cooking your food.

Take and cleaue your Turkie on the backe, and bruise all the bones.
"Well, you don't want to *break* them...that looks suspicious..."
"On the dark side I picture stalking turkeys with rattan..."
"I wonder if I can bring 3 turkeys to the Bhakail heavy practice...  hmmmm."
"Oooo, a turkey piñata for the heavies. Who wants the first whack?"

Yesterday 10 people showed up for recipe testing. We made armored turnips (savory, not a hint of sweet at all), salt crusted fish (the clear winner), a complex salad with pomegranate seeds, fresh baked manchett rolls, boiled brussel sprouts, wardons in syup and butter beer. There was goat cheese sampling (drunken, brie and bleu) and wine and port tasting. Great people, good food, recipes that work and chocolate raspberry port. Life really doesn't get better than this.

Recipes will be going up on my word press as they get done. Venison is next up on the taste testing plate.

I found the turkey recipe. Pre- 1600.... Squee.

To bake a Turkie.
TAke and cleaue your Turkie on the backe, and bruise all the bones: then season it with salt, and pepper grose beaten, and put into it good store of butter: hee must haue five houres baking.

The good Huswifes Handmaide for the Kitchin. London 1594, 1597

"Don't make me enforce the pork."

I have a variety of soft cheeses, pears, random produce and a big ol' striped bass for tomorrow. Beer will be on hand for butter beer testing and a bottle of red for claret. Recipes will be tested, food will be consumed, documentation will be written.
"My God... it will be beautiful"



*burgers available for the fish opposed and that should be Clarree not claret.

Fleur-de-not a lobster. ( Really... )

5 email accounts, 1 crackberry. Life is good and interconnected. If I lose the phone, I'm hosed.

I dream in sauces.  Here are the sauces for Yule.  All can be made ahead of time.

Sauces:
Salad- Pomegranate, oil, pepper, salt, grains of paradise, thyme, garlic, honey, mustard, vinegar
Venison- pepper, salt, grains of paradise, garlic, thyme, parsley, brown ale, wheat flour
Pork- orange, stock, salt, pepper, cinnamon, clove, thyme, garlic, parsley
Roast bird- salt, pepper, parsley, thyme, garlic, wheat flour, stock
Fish- garlic, butter, white wine, salt, pepper
Spice royal-red wine, honey, vinegar, sandlewood, pepper, cloves, mace, quince, currants, pine nuts, figs
Snowe-cream, sugar, egg
Stock- chicken bones,carrots, celery, onion, bay leaf, garlic, sage, thyme, peppercorns, water, parsnips